FIA race director Charlie Whiting was spotted in the Ferrari garage taking photos of the controversial part on his phone.

But Renault technical boss Bob Bell said: “We’re working on something too. I think all the teams will be.”

Moving the wing mirrors up has freed up an area for improved airflow into the sidepod, and negates the effect the halo can have on aerodynamic gains.

The double mirror has caught the eye of FIA officials, however, and Ted explained: “There’s some doubt over their legality and what mirrors are allowed to be.”

But is the unique design simply another example of Ferrari’s recent pre-eminence in F1’s development stakes? “We came up in the last couple of years that people tended to copy,” Sebastian Vettel told Sky Sports News.

“Most of the cars now follow our trend of the sidepods and some of the bargeboard designs. It’s confirmation we are heading the right way.”